The Virginia Festival of the Book was another huge success this year! Our smallish town of Charlottesville is swarmed with bookish types for a week every year and the hardest part is figuring out how many events one can fit into one's schedule. I was thrilled to participate in a panel with authors Joan Carris and Kevin Sherry, talking about adventure stories with animal protagonists. Kevin did part of his talk while singing, playing guitar and wearing a yeti mask, and I confess I couldn't top that ... but many thanks to the kids, parents, and friends who came out to meet us.